Russia: Former head of disgraced anti-doping agency Nikita Kamaev dies

Nikita Kamaev, pictured in November 2015, had resigned from his postReuters

The former executive director of the disgraced Russian Anti-Doping Agency, Nikita Kamaev, has died, two months after leaving his post amid Russia's doping scandal.

Kamaev's death came less than two weeks after another former RUSADA figure, founding chairman Vyacheslav Sinev, who left the agency in 2010, died on 3 February.

Former general director of the agency Ramil Khabriev said he believed Kamaev, 52, had a "massive heart attack" at home after feeling pain in his chest.

"I've been told that he was out cross-country skiing, came home, and felt pain in the area of the heart," Khabriev said. "I'd never heard him complain of anything to do with his heart. Perhaps his wife knew about some sort of problem," he told the Russian state-run TASS news agency.

In November, RUSADA was stopped from carrying out drug tests after it was accused of flouting anti-doping rules. A month later, Kamaev and Khabriev quit as the Russian Sports Ministry pushed for the agency to carry out reforms under new leadership.

Mariya Savinova was at the centre of doping allegations among Russian athletesReuters

World anti-doping body WADA accused RUSADA of covering up doping by leading Russian athletes, giving them advance knowledge of supposedly surprise tests and allowing banned athletes to continue competing.

After the accusations by WADA, Kamaev defended his organisation, saying it had been fighting drug abuse effectively. He said that the commission produced a biased report based on unreliable testimony from athletes who had been caught doping.